He Worked Inside San Quentin. A Jury Found Corrections Officer Was Hiding Horrific Crimes at Home.

A former California corrections officer who spent years working inside the prison system has now been convicted of sexually abusing three young family members in Napa County.

Richard Phillip Bardouski, a former officer with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, was found guilty after an eight-day trial, according to the Napa County District Attorney’s Office.

Bardouski previously worked as a prison guard at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center. But prosecutors said that while he held a position of authority in the corrections system, he was also abusing vulnerable children within his own family.

A jury convicted Bardouski of multiple felony child sex crimes involving three family members. The abuse happened between 2010 and 2015, during the same period when Bardouski was working as a corrections officer.

According to prosecutors, two of the victims came forward in 2023 and reported that Bardouski repeatedly abused them at his Napa home when they were very young children. During the investigation, detectives learned that a third family member had also been abused around 2010, when she was 14 years old.

The charges were severe. Bardouski was convicted of felony counts involving sexual acts against children under 10, along with multiple counts of lewd or lascivious acts involving minors.

Jurors also found several special allegations to be true, including that there were multiple victims and that Bardouski used a position of trust to commit the crimes. Prosecutors said the victims were particularly vulnerable and that the crimes involved cruelty, callousness, or viciousness.

That position of trust is one of the most disturbing parts of this case.

When someone works in law enforcement or corrections, the public expects them to understand accountability, safety, and the law. Instead, prosecutors said Bardouski used his access, authority, and family ties to harm children who should have been protected.

After retiring from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation in 2023, Bardouski moved to Montgomery, Alabama. Napa investigators later tracked him there. With help from local law enforcement, detectives took him into custody and had him extradited back to California in 2024.

Deputy District Attorney Shashawnya Worley called the case “particularly troubling” because of Bardouski’s long career as a correctional officer.

“We hope the verdict provides the victims with a sense of justice and reminds them that their voices were heard, their courage mattered, and the community stands with them,” Worley said.

Bardouski, 65, was scheduled to be sentenced on August 7. He faces life in prison, beginning with an eight-year fixed sentence followed by a minimum of 165 years.

Cases like this are hard to read, but they are important to talk about. They also raise uncomfortable questions about trust, family silence, and how long it can take for victims to feel safe enough to come forward.

Do you think people in law enforcement or corrections should face enhanced penalties when they are convicted of abusing a position of trust? And how can communities do a better job helping child victims speak up sooner?

If you suspect a child is being abused, contact local law enforcement or child protective services. If a child is in immediate danger, call 911.